Sabalom Glitz
Encyclopedia
Sabalom Glitz is a fictional character
from the long-running British
science fiction
television series, Doctor Who
. Glitz is a rogue from the planet Salostophus in the Andromeda Constellation. Glitz's first love is money, and he is often engaged in mercenary acts and profiteering. The character was created by writer Robert Holmes
.
and Peri Brown
encounter Glitz and his fellow mercenary Dibber on the planet Ravalox (The Mysterious Planet
). Glitz and Dibber are on Ravalox looking for secrets stolen by the Sleepers of Andromeda from the Matrix
on Gallifrey
. The secrets are guarded by an L-3 robot named Drathro. Glitz plans to destroy the Black Light system that fuels Drathro and then steal the secrets. When Dibber destroys the external collection aerial, the system becomes dangerously unstable, and only the Doctor's intervention prevents a potentially catastrophic explosion.
Nearing the end of the Doctor's trial
, Glitz is summoned to the Gallifreyan space station by his business partner — the Master
. The Master reveals that the events on Ravalox were engineered by the Time Lord
s to cover up the theft of the secrets. As the trial dissolves into chaos, Glitz accompanies the Doctor into the fictional reality of the Matrix to fight the Valeyard
. The Master bribes Glitz to betray the Doctor, but in turn is tricked by the Valeyard. Given what he thinks are the true secrets of the Matrix, the Master tries to upload them into his TARDIS' systems, causing the Master and Glitz to be paralysed within the TARDIS. After the Doctor finally defeats the Valeyard, he pleads with the Time Lords to show leniency to Glitz.
The Doctor, having since regenerated into his seventh persona, next encounters Glitz on Iceworld on the planet Svartos (Dragonfire
), where Glitz has become indebted to the power-mad Kane as a result of a failed fraud and gambling losses. After hearing about a fabulous treasure known as the Dragonfire, Glitz accompanies the Seventh Doctor
, Ace
and Melanie Bush
in their search, hoping to keep it for himself. The Dragonfire turns out to be part of a large bio-mechanoid dragon
, which in turn is revealed to be Kane's jailer on the planet Svartos. After the bio-mechanoid is destroyed, Kane uses the Dragonfire to power the Iceworld systems intending to escape. He also has his mercenaries drive the occupants of Iceworld onto Glitz's ship, the Nosferatu, which he subsequently destroys. Eager for revenge, Glitz goes to find Kane, and meets The Doctor, Ace and Mel in the control room of Iceworld. Iceworld is revealed to be a massive spaceship, with which Kane intends to make his escape and seek revenge on his home planet from which he was banished three thousand years earlier. However, with the systems now fully powered, the Doctor uses Iceworld's star charts to reveal to Kane that his homeworld had been destroyed when its sun went supernova
a thousand years earlier. Kane then kills himself with unfiltered sunlight, and Glitz steals the ship, which he renames Nosferatu II. To the Doctor's surprise, Mel elects to leave the TARDIS
and travel with Glitz.
for the Seventh Doctor serial The Curse of Fenric
made a reference to Ace not being a virgin, but this was removed for the final production. Briggs, who had created the character of Ace, had stated in Ace's character outline for Dragonfire
that she had slept with Glitz on Iceworld. The Paul Cornell
-written New Adventures
novel Love and War
implies (and his later novel Happy Endings
confirms) that Ace lost her virginity to Glitz.
novel Mission: Impractical
by David A. McIntee
. The Sixth Doctor
and Frobisher
run into Glitz and Dibber as they attempt to pull off the crime of the century on Vandor Prime. Dibber is killed in the adventure, and this explains why he wasn't on Iceworld. In the New Adventure novel, Head Games
, it is revealed that Glitz tired of Mel and left her on the decrepit leisure world Avalone. She was left here for months until saved by Jason and the fictional Dr Who.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
from the long-running British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
television series, Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
. Glitz is a rogue from the planet Salostophus in the Andromeda Constellation. Glitz's first love is money, and he is often engaged in mercenary acts and profiteering. The character was created by writer Robert Holmes
Robert Holmes (scriptwriter)
This entry is about the television scriptwriter. For other people with the same name, see Robert Holmes .Robert Colin Holmes was an English television scriptwriter, who for over twenty-five years contributed to some of the most popular programmes screened in the UK...
.
Character history
The Sixth DoctorSixth Doctor
The Sixth Doctor is the sixth incarnation of the protagonist of the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. He was portrayed by Colin Baker...
and Peri Brown
Peri Brown
Peri Brown, full name Perpugilliam Brown, is a fictional character played by Nicola Bryant in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who....
encounter Glitz and his fellow mercenary Dibber on the planet Ravalox (The Mysterious Planet
The Mysterious Planet
-Preproduction:In February 1985, the BBC announced that the planned twenty-third season of Doctor Who had been cancelled. After vocal protests by the press and Doctor Who fans , the BBC announced that the programme was merely on "hiatus", and would return in September 1986...
). Glitz and Dibber are on Ravalox looking for secrets stolen by the Sleepers of Andromeda from the Matrix
Matrix (Doctor Who)
The Matrix, in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who, is a massive computer system on the planet Gallifrey that acts as the repository of the combined knowledge of the Time Lords....
on Gallifrey
Gallifrey
Gallifrey is a fictional planet in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who and is the homeworld of the Doctor and the Time Lords...
. The secrets are guarded by an L-3 robot named Drathro. Glitz plans to destroy the Black Light system that fuels Drathro and then steal the secrets. When Dibber destroys the external collection aerial, the system becomes dangerously unstable, and only the Doctor's intervention prevents a potentially catastrophic explosion.
Nearing the end of the Doctor's trial
The Trial of a Time Lord
The Trial of a Time Lord is a fourteen-part British science fiction serial of the long running BBC series Doctor Who. The serial, produced as the twenty-third season of the Doctor Who television series, aired in weekly episodes from 6 September to 6 December 1986...
, Glitz is summoned to the Gallifreyan space station by his business partner — the Master
Master (Doctor Who)
The Master is a recurring character in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. He is a renegade Time Lord and the archenemy of the Doctor....
. The Master reveals that the events on Ravalox were engineered by the Time Lord
Time Lord
The Time Lords are an ancient extraterrestrial race and civilization of humanoids in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, of which the series' eponymous protagonist, the Doctor, is a member...
s to cover up the theft of the secrets. As the trial dissolves into chaos, Glitz accompanies the Doctor into the fictional reality of the Matrix to fight the Valeyard
Valeyard
The Valeyard is a fictional character from the long-running British science fiction television series, Doctor Who. He is described as an aspect of the Doctor from between his twelfth and final incarnations as depicted in the TV show or regenerations in the novelization of the story...
. The Master bribes Glitz to betray the Doctor, but in turn is tricked by the Valeyard. Given what he thinks are the true secrets of the Matrix, the Master tries to upload them into his TARDIS' systems, causing the Master and Glitz to be paralysed within the TARDIS. After the Doctor finally defeats the Valeyard, he pleads with the Time Lords to show leniency to Glitz.
The Doctor, having since regenerated into his seventh persona, next encounters Glitz on Iceworld on the planet Svartos (Dragonfire
Dragonfire
Dragonfire is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in three weekly parts from 23 November to 7 December 1987...
), where Glitz has become indebted to the power-mad Kane as a result of a failed fraud and gambling losses. After hearing about a fabulous treasure known as the Dragonfire, Glitz accompanies the Seventh Doctor
Seventh Doctor
The Seventh Doctor is the seventh incarnation of the protagonist of the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. He was portrayed by the actor Sylvester McCoy....
, Ace
Ace (Doctor Who)
Dorothy Gale McShane, better known by her nickname Ace, is a fictional character played by Sophie Aldred in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
and Melanie Bush
Melanie Bush
Mel, also sometimes referred to as Melanie, is a fictional character in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. A computer programmer from the 20th Century who is a companion of the Sixth and Seventh Doctors, she was a regular in the programme from 1986 to 1987...
in their search, hoping to keep it for himself. The Dragonfire turns out to be part of a large bio-mechanoid dragon
Dragon
A dragon is a legendary creature, typically with serpentine or reptilian traits, that feature in the myths of many cultures. There are two distinct cultural traditions of dragons: the European dragon, derived from European folk traditions and ultimately related to Greek and Middle Eastern...
, which in turn is revealed to be Kane's jailer on the planet Svartos. After the bio-mechanoid is destroyed, Kane uses the Dragonfire to power the Iceworld systems intending to escape. He also has his mercenaries drive the occupants of Iceworld onto Glitz's ship, the Nosferatu, which he subsequently destroys. Eager for revenge, Glitz goes to find Kane, and meets The Doctor, Ace and Mel in the control room of Iceworld. Iceworld is revealed to be a massive spaceship, with which Kane intends to make his escape and seek revenge on his home planet from which he was banished three thousand years earlier. However, with the systems now fully powered, the Doctor uses Iceworld's star charts to reveal to Kane that his homeworld had been destroyed when its sun went supernova
Supernova
A supernova is a stellar explosion that is more energetic than a nova. It is pronounced with the plural supernovae or supernovas. Supernovae are extremely luminous and cause a burst of radiation that often briefly outshines an entire galaxy, before fading from view over several weeks or months...
a thousand years earlier. Kane then kills himself with unfiltered sunlight, and Glitz steals the ship, which he renames Nosferatu II. To the Doctor's surprise, Mel elects to leave the TARDIS
TARDIS
The TARDISGenerally, TARDIS is written in all upper case letters—this convention was popularised by the Target novelisations of the 1970s...
and travel with Glitz.
Production notes
The original outline by Ian BriggsIan Briggs
Ian Briggs is a television writer who has written for BBC programmes Casualty and Doctor Who.Briggs wrote two serials for Doctor Who, Dragonfire and The Curse of Fenric, both featuring Sylvester McCoy as the Seventh Doctor...
for the Seventh Doctor serial The Curse of Fenric
The Curse of Fenric
The Curse of Fenric is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in four weekly parts from 25 October to 15 November 1989...
made a reference to Ace not being a virgin, but this was removed for the final production. Briggs, who had created the character of Ace, had stated in Ace's character outline for Dragonfire
Dragonfire
Dragonfire is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in three weekly parts from 23 November to 7 December 1987...
that she had slept with Glitz on Iceworld. The Paul Cornell
Paul Cornell
Paul Cornell is a British writer best known for his work in television drama as well as Doctor Who fiction, and as the creator of one of the Doctor's spin-off companions, Bernice Summerfield....
-written New Adventures
Virgin New Adventures
The Virgin New Adventures were a series of novels from Virgin Publishing based on the British science-fiction television series Doctor Who...
novel Love and War
Love and War (Doctor Who)
Love and War is an original novel written by Paul Cornell and based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It features the Seventh Doctor, Ace and introduces a new companion, Bernice Summerfield...
implies (and his later novel Happy Endings
Happy Endings (Doctor Who)
Happy Endings is an original novel written by Paul Cornell and based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It is the fiftieth book in the Virgin New Adventures series...
confirms) that Ace lost her virginity to Glitz.
Other appearances
Glitz also appears in the Past Doctor AdventuresPast Doctor Adventures
The Past Doctor Adventures were a series of spin-off novels based on the long running BBC science fiction television series Doctor Who and published under the BBC Books imprint. For most of their existence, they were published side-by-side with the Eighth Doctor Adventures...
novel Mission: Impractical
Mission: Impractical
Mission: Impractical is a BBC Books original novel written by David A. McIntee and based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
by David A. McIntee
David A. McIntee
-Biography:McIntee has written many spin-off novels based on the BBC science fiction television series Doctor Who, as well as one each based on Final Destination and Space: 1999. He has also written a non-fiction book on Star Trek: Voyager and one jointly on the Alien and Predator movie franchises...
. The Sixth Doctor
Sixth Doctor
The Sixth Doctor is the sixth incarnation of the protagonist of the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. He was portrayed by Colin Baker...
and Frobisher
Frobisher (Doctor Who)
Frobisher is a fictional character who appeared in the Doctor Who Magazine comic strip based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who in the 1980s. He was a companion of the Sixth and Seventh Doctors...
run into Glitz and Dibber as they attempt to pull off the crime of the century on Vandor Prime. Dibber is killed in the adventure, and this explains why he wasn't on Iceworld. In the New Adventure novel, Head Games
Head Games (Doctor Who)
Head Games is an original novel written by Steve Lyons and based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
, it is revealed that Glitz tired of Mel and left her on the decrepit leisure world Avalone. She was left here for months until saved by Jason and the fictional Dr Who.